MAHAVIR HARINA VANASTHALI NATIONAL PARK

It is located in Vanasthalipuram, about
15-km from the centre of the town. This deer park is one of the important
tourist attractions of Hyderabad
. The Forest Department maintains this park.

The
once the Nizam's hunting grounds is now home for a few hundred black buck
along with several species of birds. The Deer Park has an undulating
terrain, of 189 hectares dominated by acacia trees. In the monsoon this
park looks picturesque with the golden and white flowers of these trees on
the lush green carpet of grass.

Antelope and the beautiful black bucks are an endangered species now.
Black buck looks very handsome with the spiralled horns that have
corkscrew like turns, which give them a majestic look. Their horns are
permanent unlike those of deer, which are shed seasonally. This beautiful
black buck, known as "Krishna Jinka" in Telugu, was declared the
state animal of Andhra Pradesh.

Fauna
Mahaveer Harina Vanasthali National Park provides the much-needed safe
haven essential for the existence of black buck. It is also home to a
hundred species of birds, and pond herons, egrets, kingfishers, cormorants
can be sighted almost always. More lucky ones can even watch black bucks,
literally locking horns in a duel for a score of beautiful does.

Except on Mondays the park is open every day of the week for visitors
from 9.00 am to 5.00 pm.